Westfield
An international shopping-centre brand originating in Australia and now used across major retail and mixed-use destinations operated by Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and other regional partners.
Last updated October 17, 2026
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Overview
Westfield Corporation was an Australian commercial real-estate company focused on the ownership, development, design, construction, leasing, management and marketing of large shopping centres. It was created in 2014 when the former Westfield Group was divided into two separately structured businesses. The Australian and New Zealand assets were placed into Scentre Group, while the United States and United Kingdom assets were transferred to Westfield Corporation. The separation was intended to give the businesses more focused investment profiles and operating strategies: Scentre concentrated on Westfield-branded centres in Australia and New Zealand, while Westfield Corporation operated the international portfolio. The Westfield name originated with the opening of Westfield Place in Blacktown, in western Sydney, in July 1959. The original centre was opened by John Saunders and Frank Lowy, and the name combined a reference to western Sydney with the notion of a field formerly used as subdivided farmland. The original Westfield business was floated on the Australian Stock Exchange in 1960 and expanded from New South Wales into Victoria and Queensland during the 1960s. It subsequently developed into one of the most prominent Australian shopping-centre groups. The company’s international growth was particularly significant in the United States. Westfield entered the American market in 1977 through the acquisition of Trumbull Shopping Park in Connecticut. Further acquisitions and developments followed in California, Michigan, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York. In 1994, Westfield participated with General Growth and Whitehall Real Estate in the purchase of 19 shopping centres for approximately US$1 billion. By 2005, the broader Westfield business owned centres in 15 US states. In the United Kingdom, Westfield established a major presence through large urban and regional shopping destinations, including Westfield London and Westfield Stratford City, while its broader European portfolio extended across several continental European markets. Westfield also expanded into New Zealand during the 1990s, primarily by acquiring existing centres associated with Fletcher Property and progressively applying the Westfield identity. Westfield Albany, opened in 2007, was among the group’s notable new developments in that market. However, the New Zealand and Australian operations were ultimately assigned to Scentre Group rather than Westfield Corporation in the 2014 restructuring. Westfield Corporation operated as more than a property owner. Its activities covered development, architectural and design work, construction, investment and asset management, property management, retail leasing and centre marketing. The portfolio included interests in approximately 40 shopping centres in the United States and Europe, with around 7,500 retail outlets and assets under management exceeding $28.5 billion, according to descriptions of the company during its independent period. It also operated Westfield Labs, a technology and design initiative based at Westfield San Francisco Centre that explored digital retail, customer experience and technology-led innovation. The corporation’s independent existence ended after Unibail-Rodamco agreed to acquire it. Westfield’s board recommended the transaction in December 2017, and the takeover was completed in June 2018. Westfield Labs was excluded from the transaction. Following completion, the acquiring parent was renamed Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, and the Westfield brand continued as a shopping-centre identity within that group rather than as a separate listed corporation.
History
The Westfield story began in western Sydney, where John Saunders and Frank Lowy opened Westfield Place in Blacktown in July 1959. The name referred both to the company’s western-Sydney setting and to the former farmland on which the centre was developed. The business was floated on the Australian Stock Exchange in 1960 and initially expanded through New South Wales, building five additional centres before entering Victoria and Queensland in 1966 and 1967. International expansion became a defining feature of the wider Westfield Group. The business entered the United States in 1977 by acquiring Trumbull Shopping Park in Connecticut. It added centres in California, Michigan and Connecticut in 1980, followed by properties in California, New Jersey and Long Island, New York, in 1986. In 1994, Westfield joined General Growth and Whitehall Real Estate in acquiring 19 centres for approximately US$1 billion. The American portfolio continued to grow, reaching centres in 15 states by 2005. Westfield also built a significant New Zealand presence during the 1990s. It acquired a number of existing Fletcher-associated shopping centres and gradually converted them to the Westfield identity. Westfield Albany, opened in 2007, represented a notable ground-up development in the country. In the United Kingdom, the group pursued major metropolitan and regional developments, while its later international portfolio included interests in France, Spain, Germany, Poland, Sweden, the Netherlands and Italy. The corporate structure changed substantially in 2010, when the Westfield Group placed half of its Australian and New Zealand assets into Westfield Retail Trust, an entity traded on the Australian Securities Exchange under the symbol WRT. That arrangement was followed by a broader 2014 separation. Australian and New Zealand assets were transferred to Scentre Group, while the international assets in the United States and United Kingdom became Westfield Corporation. The resulting corporation concentrated on international shopping-centre ownership, development and operations. During its independent period, Westfield Corporation’s capabilities extended across the full property lifecycle. It developed and constructed centres, designed retail environments, managed investment assets and funds, leased space to retailers, operated properties and marketed destinations to consumers. Its portfolio was described as containing interests in about 40 shopping centres across the United States and Europe, with approximately 7,500 stores and assets under management of more than $28.5 billion. Westfield Labs, located at Westfield San Francisco Centre, served as a technology and design arm focused on digital retail and customer experience. The company accepted a takeover proposal from Unibail-Rodamco in December 2017. Completion occurred in June 2018, and the acquiring group adopted the name Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. Westfield Labs was excluded from the acquisition. As a result, Westfield Corporation ceased to operate as a separate listed company, although the Westfield name continued as a major brand for shopping centres within the enlarged Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield group.
- 2025
Westfield becomes part of URW’s 2025–2028 growth plan
[5]URW identifies the global strength of the Westfield brand as a strategic platform for growth, customer engagement and retailer partnerships.
- 2018
Westfield Corporation acquired by Unibail-Rodamco
[4]The transaction closes and the combined group becomes Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield. Westfield Corporation is no longer an independent listed company.
- 2017
Unibail-Rodamco announces Westfield transaction
[14]Unibail-Rodamco agrees to acquire Westfield Corporation in a transaction aimed at creating a global operator of flagship shopping destinations.
- 2016
Westfield World Trade Center opens
[8]The retail component of the rebuilt World Trade Center opens in lower Manhattan under the Westfield name.
- 2014
International portfolio separated into Westfield Corporation
[3]The Australian and New Zealand operations are separated into Scentre Group, while the US and UK international portfolio becomes Westfield Corporation.
- 2011
Westfield Stratford City opens
[13]Westfield Stratford City opens beside the London Olympic Park and becomes a major regeneration and destination-retail project.
- 2008
Westfield London opens
[12]Westfield London opens in White City as a major retail, dining and leisure destination.
- 2004
Westfield Group restructuring
[11]Westfield Holdings, Westfield Trust and Westfield America Trust are combined into the Westfield Group.
- 1994
CenterMark transaction expands the US portfolio
[11]An acquisition involving 19 centres substantially increases Westfield’s US portfolio.
- 1977
Entry into the United States
[10]Westfield enters the US market through the acquisition of a shopping centre in Trumbull, Connecticut.
Products and positioning
Premium, experience-oriented shopping-centre ownership and operation focused on dominant metropolitan destinations that combine retail with dining, leisure, entertainment, culture, events and digital customer engagement.
Retail property · 1959
Westfield shopping centres
The core Westfield offering is a network of large shopping centres and urban retail destinations. These properties combine fashion, beauty, department stores, technology, home, services and everyday retail with restaurants, cafés, cinemas, leisure activities and public events. Centres are typically positioned in major metropolitan areas and are managed as destinations with their own local identity while sharing a common premium Westfield experience.
Flagship shopping centre · 2008
Westfield London
Westfield London is a major destination in White City, west London. It combines a large retail offer with restaurants, leisure, public spaces and transport connections. The centre helped demonstrate Westfield’s approach to destination retail in a dense metropolitan setting and became one of the brand’s most recognizable European properties.
Flagship shopping centre · 2011
Westfield Stratford City
Westfield Stratford City is a large retail and leisure destination beside the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in east London. Opened ahead of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, it combines shopping, dining, entertainment and extensive transport access and has played an important role in the regeneration of Stratford.
Urban retail destination · 2016
Westfield World Trade Center
Westfield World Trade Center occupies a prominent position within the rebuilt World Trade Center complex in lower Manhattan. Its offer includes international and local fashion, beauty, lifestyle and technology retailers, alongside restaurants, public circulation spaces and nearby cultural and visitor attractions. It represents Westfield’s emphasis on integrating retail with major civic and urban environments.
Flagship shopping centre · 1964
Westfield Century City
Westfield Century City in Los Angeles is a premium open-air destination combining fashion, department stores, restaurants, entertainment, wellness, landscaped plazas, public art and events. A major redevelopment completed in 2017 expanded and repositioned the centre as a lifestyle-oriented destination serving a large metropolitan catchment.
Flagship shopping centre · 1986
Westfield Valley Fair
Westfield Valley Fair serves Silicon Valley and the wider San Francisco Bay Area. The centre is positioned around premium and luxury retail, dining, entertainment and technology-oriented consumers, illustrating the brand’s focus on high-income metropolitan catchments and experience-led redevelopment.
Digital retail and customer experience
Westfield digital and retail media services
Westfield has developed digital, customer-experience and retail-media capabilities intended to connect visitors, retailers and brands across physical centres and online channels. These initiatives include centre websites and applications, customer communications, event promotion, brand activations, data-supported marketing and commercial media opportunities linked to the network’s visitor audience.
Marketing campaigns
- 2025The Louvre x Westfield
France
Westfield collaborated with the Louvre on an art-focused program at Westfield Forum des Halles, bringing museum-linked cultural content into a shopping-centre environment.
Outcome. The program reinforced Westfield’s positioning around culture, discovery and experiential visits.
- 2025Westfield destination and experience platform
Austria · Czech Republic · Denmark · France · Germany · Netherlands · Poland · Saudi Arabia · Spain · Sweden · United Kingdom · United States
Westfield’s current international communications emphasize shopping centres as places for dining, leisure, entertainment, culture and shared time, not merely transactional retail.
Outcome. The campaign platform supports a consistent global identity while allowing individual centres to retain local programming and character.
- 2016Westfield World Trade Center opening program
United States
The opening of Westfield World Trade Center was promoted as a retail, dining, culture and visitor-experience destination within the rebuilt World Trade Center complex.
Outcome. The centre became one of the most visible examples of Westfield’s urban destination strategy.
- 2013Westfield Labs and retail innovation
United States · United Kingdom
Westfield developed Westfield Labs as a digital and innovation initiative focused on retail technology, customer experience, data, social engagement and partnerships with emerging retail concepts.
Outcome. The initiative helped position Westfield as an innovation-oriented shopping-centre operator rather than solely a property owner.
Brand decisions
2025
Use Westfield as a growth platform for destination retailStrategyBackground
URW’s 2025–2028 business plan emphasized high-quality assets, retailer partnerships, customer engagement and the global reach of the Westfield identity.
Action taken
URW incorporated the Westfield brand into its broader growth and value-creation strategy, with emphasis on retail media, experiences, events and premium metropolitan destinations.
Aftermath
The strategy confirmed Westfield’s role as a core commercial and marketing platform for URW’s retail-property portfolio.
2018
Retain Westfield as the flagship consumer brand within URWStrategyBackground
Following the acquisition, URW needed to integrate Westfield’s international portfolio while preserving the brand equity associated with its best-known shopping destinations.
Action taken
URW retained Westfield branding at selected European and United States centres and used the name as a platform for customer experience, retailer relationships, events and destination marketing.
Aftermath
Westfield became a principal customer-facing identity within URW rather than an independent listed company.
2017
Agree to sale of Westfield Corporation to Unibail-RodamcoM&ABackground
Westfield pursued a transaction with Unibail-Rodamco after years of concentrating on premium assets and flagship destinations in major cities.
Action taken
Westfield accepted Unibail-Rodamco’s acquisition proposal, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.
Aftermath
The transaction led to the creation of Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield and ended Westfield Corporation’s existence as an independent listed company.
Announced transaction value. (2017-2018)
2014
Separate Australian and New Zealand assets from the international portfolioStrategyBackground
Westfield reorganized its corporate structure to separate the Australian and New Zealand shopping-centre business from its United States and United Kingdom-focused international operations.
Action taken
Scentre Group was created for the Australian and New Zealand portfolio, while Westfield Corporation held the international assets and retained the Westfield brand in those markets.
Aftermath
The separation created two independently managed businesses with different geographic strategies and corporate ownership structures.
Recent events
Pinstripes completes partnership with Westfield[17]
Pinstripes announced that it had completed a strategic partnership with Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, signing definitive leases for two locations planned at Westfield Garden State Plaza in New Jersey and Westfield Topanga in California.
Upparel opened a sustainability hub at Westfield Southland[18]
Reported:
Upparel opened its first bricks-and-mortar sustainability hub at Westfield Southland, featuring an interactive sock-recycling experience.
Sources18 sources
- 1Westfield official international websitewestfield.com
- 2Westfield history, Scentre Groupscentregroup.com
- 3Scentre Group corporate historyscentregroup.com
- 4Unibail-Rodamco acquisition of Westfield Corporationeuronext.com
- 5URW 2025–2028 business planurw.com
- 6URW CEO succession announcementurw.com
- 7Frank Lowy, National Portrait Gallery of Australiaportrait.gov.au
- 8Westfield World Trade Center visitor informationwestfield.com
- 9Westfield Century City, URW portfoliourw.com
- 10Entry into the United Statesreport.urw.com
- 11CenterMark transaction expands the US portfolioreport.urw.com
- 12Westfield London openswestfield.com
- 13Westfield Stratford City openswestfield.com
- 14Unibail-Rodamco announces Westfield transactionurw.com
- 15Westfield Labs and retail innovationen.wikipedia.org
- 16The Louvre x Westfieldwestfield.com
- 17Pinstripes与Westfield完成战略合作californiatelegraph.com
- 18Upparel在Westfield Southland开设可持续发展中心ragtrader.com.au
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